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Columbus, May 10, 1848. 
The Democratic State Convention, composed of del¬ 
egates from the different counties of the State, met in 
the large hall of the Statesman buildings, at 9 o’clock, 
A. M., and was called to order by the Hon, Amos E. 
Wood, of Sandusky county, on whose motion the 
Convention was temporarily organized by the appoint¬ 
ment of the Hon. ELIJAH VANCE, of Butler coun- 
y, as President, and by the selection of Luther Day, 
of Portage, and Wm. D, Morgan, of Columbiana, as 
Secretaries. 

The foliowing delegates appeared, produced their 
credentials and took their seats: 

Allen —Wm. Armstrong. 

Ashland —George W. Bull, J. S. Fulton. 

Auglaize —George C. McCune. 

Brown —John H. Blair, Jas. Landon, T. Granville 
Penn, 

Butler —Jas. B. King, M. R. Shields, Franklin Stokes. 
Columbiana —James Tolberton, Samuel L. Sturgeon, 
Henry Fries, James Martin, Benjamin Wendle, W. D. 
Morgan, John Geisenger, Albert Armstrong. 

Clermont —Mahlon H. Medary, Geo. W. Shultz. 
Clinton —Thos. L. Carothers, Wm. H. Baldwin. 

Clark —Wm. Hunt, Mathew Bonner. 

Champaign —D. Louderback,D. V.Runyion, A.Pick- 
erd, F. A. Morrison, E. G. Garrett, John Taylor. 

Crawford —J. Plants, M. P. Bean, James Clements, 
James Griffith. 

Cuyahoga —Ray Haddock. 

Coshocton —John Crawford, James Ravenscroft, Jesse 
Meredith, J. M. Love. 

Darke —L. Montfort. 

Delaware —Clias. Swietzer, Lester Bartlett, Alva Pa- 
tle, Stephen Curran, John Curliss, Israel Hite. 

Defiance —A. P. Edgerton. 

Fayetee —Jacob Jamison, J. J. Stewart, J. C. Beil, L. 
D. Willard R. Stewart. 

* Fairfield —H. C. Whitman, D. A. Robertson, J. C. 
Roney, John Swaze, Daniel Keller, Abram Shafer, Pe¬ 
ter Hays, W. R. Rankin, Alfred McVeigh, Wm. Mar¬ 
tin, Jacob Site, C. Ressler, R. D. Sutphen, H. H. Rob¬ 
inson, Jeremiah Ricketts, Jesse Middleton, Samuel 
Bressler, Samuel Ewing, C. Baker, ' John Chaney, 
David Lyle, (casting 9 votes.) 

Franklin —A. G. Hibbs, E. Gale, Dr. Goble, Jona- 
athan Bobo, John Walton. 

Greene —J. A. Forsman, W. M. Starks, J. F. Eyler. 
Guernsey —W. H. Gilll, Matthew Gaston, John Har¬ 
rison, Daniel Logee, George Gill, Joseph Ferrell. 

Hamilton —Dr. Wm. Mount, John Brough, David 
T. Disney, Israel Brown, jr., Wm. S. Hatch, Samuel 


Martin, Alexander Long, Peter Zinn, Moses Ranir.y, 
James H. Ewing. 

Highland —D. W. C. Johnson, Wm. Morrow. 
Hancock —H. P. Eaton, Jesse Wheeler, H. Bishop. 
Hardin —John Goodin. 

Huron —John Perry, Ira Lake. 

Holmes —Wm. Rice, James Peterman. 

Know —Wm. M. Williams, H. A. Childs, W. S. V. 
Prentiss, T. T. Tress, James Lefaver, David Gorsuch, 
B Elliott. 

Lorain —John M. Vincent, Hiram Belden, Asa W. 
Whitney, Caleb Ormsby. 

Lake —D 1. French, Silas Axtell. 

Logan —‘David Robb, W. L. Blocher. 

Samuel Patterson, Levi J. Houghey, W. B. 
Morris, Geo. Armstrong, John ShafF, Daniel Hum¬ 
phrey, Samuel Winegarner. 

Madison —J. H. Kennedy, Sam’l N.Kerr. 

Montgomery —C. L. Vallandigham, Hiram Dodge, J. 
W. Dryden. 

-Thomas Maxwell, John Sawyer, Thos. Sbid- 
ler, Daniel McNeal, Charles ?dorris, jr., Geo. W. Kerr, 
James Sims. 

Morrow —Wm. Robbins, Wm. Bartlett. 

Marion —J. R. Knapp, Jr., R. Wilson. 

Mercer —G. James Sheldon, F. C. Lee Blond. 

Medina —D. Miller, Richard Warner. 

Muskingum —John Bratton. 

Ottowa —John Whitney. 

Portage —Luther Day. 

Perry —J. R. Van Horne, Isaac Larimore, William 
Ross. 

Pike —Van S. Murphy. 

Pickaway —E, B. Olds, George Bennett, Benjamin 
Shelby, Samuel Evans, Samuel Diifenderfer, So omon 
Teagarden, A. L. Perrill, W. Griswold. 

Richland —T. W. Bartley, Daniel Riblet, E. Chew', B. 
Jackson, J. P. Henderson. 

Ross —Theodore Sherer, E. Chew. 

Seneca —Amos Nicholas. 

Smidusky —Amos E. Wood. 

Summit —Lucius V. Bierce, George Bliss, J. C. Mich- 
ner, Rufus P. Spaulding. 

Stark —John S. Cock, Edward L. Carney, George 
Miller, Daniel J. Bigger, Arnold Lynch, Samuel Bur- 
well. 

Trumbull —Colwell Porter, J. H. Lewis, Wm. Fer¬ 
guson. 

Union —John^Cassel, Jos. Bain, Jas. Thompson, Wm. 
L. Gibson, J. C. Doty, Philip Snyder, G. A. Cassel, 
Christian Myers, Smith Emery, Isaac Anderson. 

Van Wert —Robert Gilliland. 

Warren —Joseph Anderson, J. S. Simonton, C. R. 
White, J. H. Drake, Wm. Miller, David Crise, W. R, 
Kendall, A. S. Kirby, D. M. Worley, Wm. Croson. / 









4 


Wyandotte —W. T. Giles, Geo. Harper, A. Lyle. 
Williams —E. H. Leland, Wm. Sheridon. 

Wood —John Bates. 

Wayne —Samuel L. Lorah, Henry Sifton, Conrad 
Pranks, George Mulholland, John E. Brown, M. A. 
Goodfellow. 

On motion of Wm. H, Baldwin of Clinton County, 
the following resolution was adopted: 

Resolved, That a Committee of one from each Con¬ 
gressional District be appointed; each Delegation nom¬ 
inating its own member, to select officers for the perma¬ 
nent organization of the Convention. 

The following was the Committee appointed to re¬ 
port permanent officers of the Convention, m obedi¬ 
ence to the above resolution: 

District No. 1, Wrn. S. Hatch, 

“ “ 2, Joseph Anderson, 

“ “ 3, W. M. Stark, 

“ “ 4, David Robb, 

“ “ 5, G. J. Sheldon, 

*• “ 6, Amos E. Wood, 

“ 7, Mahlon H. Medary, 

*' “ 8, Theodore Shearer, 

“ “ 9, A. McVeigh, 

" “ 10, Sam’l Winegarner, 

" “ 11, Richard Wilson, 

“ 13, Isaac Larimore, 

** “ 14, John Harrison, 

“ “ 16, James Peterman, 

“ “ 17, James Tolerton, 

“ “ 18, Edward L. Carney, 

“ 19, George Bliss, 

“ 20, Silas Axtell, 

” “ 21, R. Warner. 

On motion of Rufus P. Spalding of Summit county, 
it was 

Resolved, That a committee be appointed, consisting 
of one member from each county represented, to pre¬ 
pare business for the action of this Convention. That 
said committee be named by the respective delegations, 
each selecting its own member and announcing his 
name to the Convention. 

On motion of Mr. Haddock of Cuyahoga county, 
ilio Convention took a recess until half past ten 
o’clock. 

The following is the committee which was subse- 
tptently announced: 

Allen —Wm. Armstrong. 

Ashland~Geo. W. Bull. 

Auglaize —Geo. C. McCune. 

Brown —James Loudon. 

Butler —-Franklin Stokes. 

Columbiana —Wm, D. Morgan. 

Clermont —Geo. W. Schultz. 

Clinton —Wm. H. Baldwin. 

Clark —M. Bonner. 

Champaign —John Taylor. 

Crawford —J. S. Vance. 

Cuyahoga —R. Haddock. 

Coshocton —J. M. Love. 

Darke —Luther Monforl. 

Delaware —Charles Sweitzor. 

Defance^A. P. Edgerton. 

Fayette —L. D. Willard. 

Fairfield —H. C. Whitman. » 

Franklin —John Walton. 

Green —J. A. Foresman. 

^ Guernsey —W. H. Gill. 

Hamilton —D. T. Disney, John Br&oigh. 

^Hardin —John Goodin. 

Hancock —H. P. Eaton. 

Highland —D. W. Johnson. 


Huron —John Perry. 

Holmes —Wm. Rice. 

Knox —Henry H. Childs. 

Lake —D. I. French. 

Licking —John Shaff. 

Logan —Wm. L. Blocher. 

Lorain —Hiram Belden. 

Madison —John H. Kennedy. 

Montgornery-^C. L. Vallandigham. 

Miami —Charles Morris. 

Muskingum —John Bratton, 

Mercer —F. C. LeBlond. 

Marion — J. R. Knapp. 

Medina —R. Warner. 

Morroio —Wm. Robbins, 

Ottawa —John Whitney, 

Portage —Luther Day. 

Perry —Wm. Ross. 

Pike —V. S. Murphy. 

Pickaxoay —E. B. Olds. 

Richland- —T. W. Bartley, 

Ross —T. Shearer. 

Seneca —Amos Nichols. 

Sandusky —A. E. Wood, 

Summit —R. P. Spalding. 

Stark —John S. Cock. 

Trumbull —J. H. Lewis. 

Union —Jo h n Cassel. 

Van Wert —Robert Gilleland, 

Warren —John S. Simonson. 

Wyandotte —Aaron Lyle. 

Williams —E. H Leland. 

Wood —John Bates. 

Wayne —Henry Sefton. 

10)4 ©■’clock, A. M 
The Convention re-assembled. 

Mr. Warner, from the Committee charged with the 
selection of permanent officers of the Convention, re-' 
ported the following names, which on motion was unan¬ 
imously adopted: 

President, 

RUFUS P. SPALDING, 

Vice Presidents. 

1st Disk Dr. Wm. Mount, 


2d 

do 

Gen. W. H. Baldwin, 

3d 

do 

Jno. W. Dryden, 

4th 

do 

Col. Wm. Hunt, 

5th 

do 

A. P. Edgerton, 

6th 

do 

John B.\tes, 

John H. Blair, 

7 th 

do 

8th 

do 

Van S. Murphy, 

9th 

do 

Dr. Wayne Griswold, 

10 th 

do 

Levi J. Haughey, 

11th 

do 

Dr. J. P. Henderson, 

13 th 

do 

Dr. j. P. Van Horn, 

14th 

do 

Wm. H. Gill, 

16th 

do 

John Crawford, 

17th 

do 

Samuel S. Sturgeon, 

18th 

do 

Samuel L. Lorah, 

19 th 

do 

Lucius V. Bierce, 

20th 

do 

Silas Axtell, 

21st 

do 

John Terry. 


Secretarries. 

LuTinsR Day, 
j Arnold Lynch, 

t T. Granville Penn, 

Henry Friese, - 
Henry Bishop, 

Mahlon H. Medary. 

‘ Mr. Spaulding then came forward, and In a speech of 










o 


thrilling eloquence, returned thanks to the Conven¬ 
tion. 

In accepting the station he knew not, he said, why 
he should feel embarassed, but so he did feel. Pie 
once presided over the • deliberations of the popular 
branch of the Ohio Legislature, and in troubled times 
It was his fortune then to see a blow struck at the Con¬ 
stitution, but it proved of no avail. This Convention 
is composed of more members[than the body over which 
ho then presided, and among its members, it contains 
talent and devotion to the country, rarely seen. To 
this fact, to the intelligence around him,—to the strange 
limes into which we have fallen, he (Mr. S.) attribu 
ted the embarrassment he felt. 

The spirit of Revolution is abroad in the land. By 
the mad acts of the majority in your last Legislative 
Assembly, that spirit was raised and fostered, for he 
(Mr. Spalding) felt, that the blow of revolution was 
struck, when, withoutlaw, without rightand in defiance 
of the Constitution, an attempt was last winter made to 
reorganize the law making power of the Government 
so as to take the power from the majority and to give it 
to a minority of the people. 

This Convention has met,''as a Convention of safety 
—to shield the State from the efPect of those acts,—to 
guard the rights of the people. The Delegates are 
fresh from the people—they know their wants, their 
feelings and their wishes, and they are here to represent 
them, and to meet, as our fathers met, to provide for 
the public safety. The Revolution was commenced last 
winter, by the acts of the whig party, through their 
Senators and Representatives in Legislative council as¬ 
sembled. To guard the rights of your absent constit¬ 
uents—those who have entrusted you with their dele¬ 
gated power, is our object in coming up here. 

The duties of a presiding officer, is to keep order. If 
sustained by the convention, as he felt he would be, 
Mr. S. said this would bo an easy bask. To others and 
to older heads, was committed the duty of discussing 
and judging of the proper measures to bo pursued.— 
He again thanked the convention for the honor confer¬ 
red, and to the best of his ability, Mr. S. said, ho would 
perform the duties assigned him. 

The Vice Presidents and Secretaries then took their 
seats. 

Mr. Whitman, of Fairfield, then ofiered for adoption 
the following resolution : 

Resolved, That the thanks of this convention be 
tendered to the Hon. Elijah Vance, for the able and sat¬ 
isfactory manner in which he has performed the duties 
of temporary President of the convention. 

The Resolntion was unanimously adopted. 

Judge Vance returned his thanks to the Convention, 
and thanked them for the compliment tendered. He 
had been appointed a delegate to the Convention in his 
absence from home, but owing to his peculiar situation 
(as President Judge of the Butler Circuit) he had deem¬ 
ed it improper to take part in its proceedings. Feeling 


in common with others, a deep interest in the crisis into 
which we have been plunged, ho had come up to this 
city, to see his friends and to counsel with them. When 
the Convention was organized, and he was selected as 
its President pro tempore, he deemed it his duty to stabi 
the facts, and to express the hope that when the per¬ 
manent organization took place, another might bo se¬ 
lected. He was glad, under the circumstances, to be 
released from its duties, though, under other circum¬ 
stances, he would have felt the honor of being called 
upon to preside over such a convention as one of which 
any man might be proud. The gentleman selected is 
capable, talented and patriotic. He would again return 
the thanks for the flattering vote just passed, and would 
long remember and cherish it. 

The committee on business and on resolutions not 
being ready to report, the interval was filled up by 
speeches from Gen. Bierce, of Summit, Col. Weller, 
R. H. Smith (who went to the wars a whig and return¬ 
ed E democrat) and others. 

The Convention then adjourned until 7 o’clock thLs 
evening. 

EVENING SESSION. 

The Convention met pursuant to adjournment, and 
was ably and eloquently addressed by Mr. Rankin of 
Fairfield county and by Dr. Edson B. Olds of Pickaway. 
The committee on resolutions not being ready to re¬ 
port, tlie convention adjourned until to-morrow morn- 
ing. 

Thursday, May 11, 184B. 

The Convention met pursuant to adjournment, it 
being understood that the committee on resolutions 
would be ready to meet the Convention, and make a 
report at an early hour in the afternoon, the Conven¬ 
tion adjourned until 11^ o'clock. 

o’clock. P. M. 

The Convention met pursuant to adjournment. 

Mr. Disney, from the committee on resolutions, sta¬ 
ted that the committee were now ready to report. In 
committee, they had given the various propositions 
which came before them, long and serious considera¬ 
tion. The freedom of debate had been exercised, and 
each proposition scrutinized with care and attention ; 
and, although diflerences on minor points existed, yet 
every proposition now submitted, had passed the com¬ 
mittee by clear and decided majorities. 

The report of the committee, he w^ould now submit 

Resoloed, 1st. That there is now in existence in Ohio, 
no law, by means of which the State Legislature can 
be formed and organized after the second Tuesday in 
October next. 

Resolved, 2d. That the evils, likely to bo entailed up¬ 
on the people by reason of the improvident course pur¬ 
sued by the whig majority in the last General Assembly, 
may still be averted, if the Executive will exercise the 
prerogative vested in him by the Constitution, andcon- 
v»‘ne the Legislature for the purpose of enacting- the 
requisite law, for the apportionment of Senators an 1 
Representatives among the several counties of the State. 




6 


•'•itl fhnf. as peace-loving citizens of the State, we re- 
spea'inlly call upon him to discharge this duty. 

Ratoloed, 3d. That if the Legislature be not thus 
culled together by the Governor, it will become neces- 
siiry for the Democratic voters of Ohio, as a measure 
<;f protection and self-defence, to appear at the polls on 
the second Tuesday in October, in all their force; and 
rust their suffrages for Democratic candidates for the 
Senate and House of Representatives, under the whig 
apportionment scheme, with a view to ulterior measures 
for the preservation of their just political rights:—These 
measures may be defined to be, in the first instance, a 
refusal on the part of the Democratic candidates wdio 
shall receive a majority of the votes cast in the several 
counties and districts, to take upon themselves the obli¬ 
gations of Senators and Representatives under a fraud¬ 
ulent and nugatory enactment for their election. 

Tn the second instance, and as the law making pow¬ 
er provided for in the present Constitution, wull be at an 
end, for the wmnt of a constitutional Legislature, it will 
dcA'olve on the people in the exercise of their inherent 
and sovereign rights, to frame a new' constitution where¬ 
in their own peculiar interests may be more effectually 
protectc 1 than they have hitherto been. Thus, from a 
( ‘iniJOi-iiry inconvenience, resulting from a wanton a- 
huse of pow'er on the part of whig Legislators; a migh¬ 
ty mass of two millions of souls shall inherit a charter 
of fr ed.oni in consonance w'ith the spirit and improve¬ 
ment of the age, W'ithout the least exertion of physical 
force. 

Resol'xd, 4th. That if the Governor shall neglect or 
refuse to discharge his constitutional duty, and convene 
the I^egislature for the purpose of passing an apportion¬ 
ment lav/, as aforesaid, then, and in that event, it wull 
he expedient for a State Convention to re-assemble at 
Columbus, on the first l\Ionday in December next, to 
devise the necessary measures for securing the action 
of tlie whole people on the subject of a new' Constitu¬ 
tion 

Resohed, 5th. That in view' of the momentous crisis 
now existing, we deem it important that the people 
Irave the benefit of a standing Committee of Public 
S.AFETY, to consist of tw’enty-one members, chosen by 
this Convention, from the respective Congressional 
Districts: said committee to organize immediately, and 
to meet hereafter at such times and jilaces as their 
Chairman shall designate, to confer for the public good. 

Resolved, 6th. Thatthemanly and patriotic firmness of 
the fifteen Senators who retired from the Senate Cham¬ 
ber at the late session of the Legislature, with a view to 
prevent an overthrow of our constitutional liberties by 
a fraudulent and unconstitutional system of representa¬ 
tion, has entitled those officers to the gratitude of the 
democratic party. 


ocratic votes cast at the election of 1844, and one for 
every fraction of 250 or over. 

The question then being upon the adoption of the 
first resolution as reported from the Committee, it car¬ 
ried enthusiastically and without a division. 

The question was then taken upon the passage of the 
second resolution as reported, and was adopted without 
a dissenting voice. 

The question then being upon the adoption of the 
third resolution. 

Mr Shearer ofRoss, moved toamend the same by strik¬ 
ing out all after the words—“for the preservation of their 
just political rights.” 

Mr. Brough of Hamilton, moved to amend the amend¬ 
ment by striking out the words, “with a view to ulterior 
measures.” 

The question being on the amendment to the amend¬ 
ment, a vote by counties w'as demanded, and the mo¬ 
tion w'as decided in the negative.—Ayes 45; noes 150. 

The question w'as then taken on the amendment, 
proposed by Mr. Shearer, and a vote by counties being 
demanded, was also decided in the negative.—Ayes 35: 
noes 185. 

The resolution then being put upon its passage, was 
adopted unanimously. 

The President then announced the following as the 
Committee of Public Safety, appointed under the 5th 
resolution. 

District No. 1, Geo. W. Holmes, 

“ “ 2, Joseph Anderson, 

“ “ 3, C. L. Vallandigham, 

“ “ 4, Wrn. Hunt, 

“ “ 5, A. P. Edgerton, 

“ “ 6, A. E. Wood, 

“ “ 7, D. Utter, 

“ “ 8, John Glover, 

“ “ 9, H. H. Robinson, 

“ “ 10, S. Medary, 

“ “ 11, T. W. Bartley, 

“ “ 13, R. E. Harte, 

“ 14, T. M. Drake, 

“ 16, D. P. Leadbetter 
“ 17, W. D. Morgan, 

“ 18, E. L. Carney, 

“ 19, Geo. Bliss 
“ 20, Jos. Hayward, 

“ 21, H. D. Clark. 


Gen. Gale, of Franklin, moved the adoption of the 
report, and the question being on the passage of the 
resolutions, 

Mr. Hatch, of Hamilton, called for a division of the 
question, which being agreed to, the President stated 
the question to be on the adoption of the first resolu¬ 
tion. 

Pending this question, Mr. Vallandigham of Mont¬ 
gomery, offered for adoption, the following, which w'us 
agreed to. 

Resolved, Tliut in the event, that the vote by counties 
is demanded, each county be entitled to the s:ime num¬ 
ber of votes, that such county had in the Convention of 
t he Eighth of January last, viz: one for every 500 dem- 


Mr. Whitman offered for adoption the following : 

Resolved, That a Committee of five be appointed, to 
draft an address to the people of Ohio—w'hich address 
siiall, among other things, embody the resolutions as 
they have passed this Convention, and shall also set 
forth all the facts attainable in relation to the falsifica¬ 
tion of the Journal of the House of Representatives, 
since its adjournment. 

The President announced Messrs. D. T. Disney, H. 
C. Whitman, E. B. Olds, C. B. Flood, and Sam’l Me¬ 
dary, as said Committee. 

On motion, the thanks of this meeting be tendered 
te Col. Samuel Medary, for the use of his beautiful and 
commodious Hall, and for his kindness in tendering it 
for the use of the Convention. 




7 


On motion, the thanks of the Convention were ten¬ 


dered to the President, Vice President and Secretaries, 
for the able and efficient manner in which they liave 
performed the duties assigned them. 

On motion, the proceedings of this Convention were 
ordered to be signed by its officers and published in the 
“Ohio Statesman,” and thatother Democratic papers be 
requested to copy the same. 

The Convention then adjourned without day. 

RDFUS P. SPALDING, Presideni. 


Wji. Mount, 

W. H. Baldwin, 
Jno. W. Dryden, 
Wm. Hunt, 

A. P. Edgerton, 
John Bates, 

John H. Blair, 

Van S. Murphy, 
Wayne Griswold, 
TiEvi J. Haughey 
J. P. Henderson, 

J. P. Van Horn, 

Wm. H. Gill, 

John Crawford, 
Samuel S. Sturgeon, 
Samuel L. Lorah, 
Lucius V. Bierce, 
Silas Axtell, 

John Terry, 


► V. Presets. 


Luther Day, 
Arnold Lynch, 

T. Granville Penn, 
Henry Friese, 

Henry Bishop, 
Mahlon H. Medary. 


Secretaries. 



TO THE PEOPEE OF OHIO: 


The Democratic State Convention, which met in tliis 
city, on the 10th instant, charged the undersigned with 
the duty of addressing you, in the following resolu¬ 
tion: 

Resolved, That a Committee of five be appointed, to 
draft an address to the people of Ohio—whicli address 
shall, among other things, embody the resolutions as 
they have passed this Convention, and shall al¬ 
so set forth all the facts attainable in relation to the fal¬ 
sification of the Journal of the House of Representa¬ 
tives, since its adjournment.” 

From the duty thus enjoined upon us, we have no 
disposition to shrink, and in view of the fact that the 
action of that Convention involves the interest of the 
entire people, of all classes, and of all parties, we claim 
that wo have not only a right to demand a hearing, but 
that we be heard without prejudice, and with that seri¬ 
ous attention the subject demands. 

The people of Ohio need not be told at this late day, 
that the subject matter which called the Convention to¬ 
gether at a busy and unusual season of the year, was 
an attempt on the part of the majority of the last Legis¬ 
lature to grasp, through all time, the law making pow¬ 
er of the State Government, and that, failing in this 
attempt, they have placed upon the statute books of the 
State, as a law, an apportionment scheme, which never 




finally passed either branch of the Legislature; and 
that this bill, concocted in secret—unjust and unconsti¬ 
tutional in its provisions—even if it had received on its 
pretended passage, all the necessary forms of constitu¬ 
tional and Parliamentary law, is utterly subversive of 
the plainest principles of Republican government.— 
These facts are known to you—they have been can¬ 
vassed by the people, and to right the wrong, attempt¬ 
ed to be inflicted, the Democratic State Central Com¬ 
mittee, in obedience to the demands of an outraged 
people, issued an address, calling upon the counties of 
the State to send up their delegates to the capital of 
Ohio to counsel together, and to take measures for the 
public safety. The resolutions of that Convention are 
ordered to be published with this address. They were 
adopted after a prolonged and full discussion, and are 
the stern resolves of men, who ask “nothing that is net 
clearly right, and who are unwilling to submit to any 
thing that is wrong.” 

Resolved, 1st. That there is now in existence in Ohio, 
no law, by means of which t e State Legislature can be 
formed and organized after the second Tuesday in Oc¬ 
tober next. 

‘^Resolved, 2d. That the evils, likely to be entailed 
upon the people by reason of the improvident course 
pursued by the whig majority in the last General As¬ 
sembly, may still be averted, if the Executive will exer¬ 
cise the prerogative vested in him by the Constitution, 
and convene the Legislature for the purpose of enacting 
the requisite law, for the apportionment of Senators and 
Rerepentatives among the several counties of the State; 
and that as peace-loving citizens of the State, we re¬ 
spectfully call upon him to discharge this duty. 

Resolved, 3d. That if the Legislature be not thus 
called together by the Governor, it will become neces¬ 
sary for the Democratic voters of Ohio, as a measure of 
protection and self-defence, to appear at the polls on the 
second Tuesday in October, in all their force; and cast 
their suffrages for Democratic candidates for the Senate 
and House of Representatives, under the whig appor¬ 
tionment scheme, with a view to ulterior measures for 
the preservation of their just political rights:—These ' 
measures may be defined to be, in the first instance, a 
refusal on the part of the Democratic candidates who ' 
shall receive a majority of the votes cast in the several 
counties and districts, to take upon themselves the ob¬ 
ligations of Senators and Representatives under a fraud¬ 
ulent and nugatory enactment for their election. 

“In the second instance, and as the law making pow-| 
er provided for in the present Constitution will be at ■ 
an end, for the want of a constitutional Legislature, it . 
will devolve on the people in the exercise of their in¬ 
herent and sovereign rights, to frame a new constitution 
wherein their own peculiar interests may be more ef- , 
factually protected than they have hitherto been. Thus, i 
from a temporary inconvenience, resulting from a wan¬ 
ton abuse of power on the part of whig Legislators; a : 
mighty mass of two millions of souls shall inherit a( 
charter of freedom in consonance with the spirit and , 
improvement of the age, without the least exertion of! 
physical force 

“Resolved, 4th. That if the Governor shall neglect or 
refuse to discharge his constitutional duty, and convene 
the Legislature for the purpose of passing an apportion¬ 
ment law, as aforesaid, then, and in that event, it will 
be expedient for a State Convention to re-assemblo at 
Columbus, on the first Monday in December next, to 
devise the necessary measures for securing the action 
of the whole people on the subject of a new Constitu¬ 
tion. 

“Resolved, bth. That in view of the momentous crisi 
now existing, wo deem it important that the peopl' 







8 


have tlie bnncfit of a standing Committee o? Public 
oAFKTv, to consist of twenty-one members, chsen by 
this Convention from the respective Congressional 
Districts: said committee to organize immediately, and 
to meet hereafter at such times and places as their 
Chairman shall designate, to confer for the public good. 

Resolved, 6th. That the manly and patriotic firmness of 
the fifteen Senators who retired from the Senate Cham¬ 
ber at the late session of the Legislature, with a view to 
prevent an overthrow of our constitutional liberties by 
a fraudulent and unconstitutional system of representa¬ 
tion, has entitled those officers to the gratitude of the 
democratic party.” 

These resolutions meet the crisis' fairly and fully.— 

' The men who passed them have no concealment of pur¬ 
pose to make—boldly and fearle.ssly they have thrown 
their banner to the winds, with their chart of princi¬ 
ples so plainly inscribed thereon, that he who runs may 
read, and he who reads may understand. 

Within the past ten y ars, in other parts of the Un¬ 
ion, the strange anomaP nas frequently been presented, 
of democratic Governors being elected by decided ma¬ 
jorities, while the legislative power of the State has been 
largely whig. This was the case at the last election in 
New Jersey, in Maryland, Georgia, and in other States; 
and in every State where this anomaly has happened, 
the State was districted for legislative purposes by un¬ 
scrupulous whig partisans, and so districted, too, as to 
perpeduate power in their hands. These facts known, 
and taken in connection with the bold and unblushing 
avowal made before the meeting of the last Legislature, 
byaleading whigpaperpriutedin the county of Clinton, 
that the State should be sj districted as in any contingency 
to keep it out of the hands of the democratic party, par¬ 
ticularly when the State was to be re-districted, caused 
many to fear that the same bold and unscrupulous game, 
played off with signal success in other States, would be 
attempted in Ohio. So strong and well founded was this 
belief, that the Governor of the State, in his annual mes- 
ease, warned the Legislature that no right was “dearer 
to a freeman than equal representation;” and he asked 
the majority of that body to “meet this fundamental 
trust with all that spirit of deliberation, candor, and 
fairness towards all parties, and every district of the 
State, which its delicacy and proper performance de¬ 
mands.” 

Heedless of this warning, the majority in the last 
Legislature went into an avowedly political apportion¬ 
ment. The joint select committee that reported the 
bill, in the report which accompanied it, as will bo seen 
by referauce to pages 56 and 57 of the Appendix to the 
Senate Journal, discussed the question of apportion- 
/ ment as a political question, and even went so far as to 
foreshadow the fact, that out of the thirty-six members 
of the Senate, but fifteen could, by possibility, be dem¬ 
ocratic. 

It is not our intention now, and in this address, to 
expose the glaring inequalities of this apportionment 
scheme, as regards the injustice done to the political 
party with which we act, and wo must content our¬ 
selves with asserting the simple fact, frequently charged 
.and never contradicted, that, under its provisions, though 
Col. Weller be this fall elected Governor of Ohio, by a 
majority greater than that by which Mr. Corwin was 
elected in 1840—though the democracy carry the State 
by a larger majorty on the popular vote than ever any polit¬ 
ical party carried it before, still would the liCgislature 
in both branches, be whig; and thus would power be 
perpetuated in the hands of a political party, in a fearful 
(minority of the people. Tliis fact easily proven to be 
so, by reference to the returns of former elections, is 
worth :dl the idle declamation and groundless as.serlion 


of those who attempt to subvert the plainest principle 
of Republican government, by placing the law making 
power of the State government in the hands of a mi¬ 
nority of the people, from which it cannot be wrested 
however faithless that minority may be to the great, 
principles of democratic liberty. In vain may federal 
orators endeavor to explain—in vain may they bluster, 
so long as the fact we have stated remains uncontradict¬ 
ed, the apportionment scheme, attempted to be fastened 
upon the people by a reckless majority in the last I^eg- 
islature, will be held as monstrous in its injustice—a 
base and infamous attempt to subvert that plainest 
principle of Republican government, the right of the 
majority to rule. 

Grant, for the sake of argument, that the principles of the 
whig party are rightand proiier, (andwenewaddressour- 
selves particularly to those with whom we hold an honest 
difference of opinion)—grant that the theory of banking, 
as it exists in Ohio, is correct, is safe and honest—grant, 
that it is right to exempt the banker from increased tax¬ 
ation to pay the State debt, while it is laid with heavy 
hand upon the farmer, the mechanic, and the other citi¬ 
zen—grant that these, and all the other principles of the 
whig leaders are correct, then let us ask, if it be neces¬ 
sary to perpetuate power by fraud to keep these princi¬ 
ples in the ascendant? If they be right, full and free 
discussion will show their justice and add to the num¬ 
ber of their sup))orters; but it is idle to say, that honest 
principles need a dishonest apportionment scheme to 
ensure their success. I'o so assert—to act upon that 
belief, is at once an acknowledgement upon tlio part of 
those who attempted the perjietration of the fraud, that 
their principles will not bear the test of close investiga¬ 
tion, and that hence, they must be entailed upon the 
people, whether they be willing to receive them or not. 

But we do not purpose to discuss this apportionment 
scheme so much in its political bearings, as to show its 
utter want of constitutionality in its provisions, and 
to show that, though it was signed by the Speakers, 
and published in the statute books as a law, that it never 
passed in conformity with the rules of constitutional 
and parliamentary law—that it never finally passep 
either branch of the General Assembly; and that though 
the legislative journals are defective, still there exi.sts 
on tlieir pages evidence to show that, since t!ie pretend¬ 
ed passage of this apportionment scheme, if not since 
the adjournment, that the journals have been falsified 
to sustain the bold conspiracy against the constitution, 
and against the political rights of the peojile of the state. 

The Constitution of Ohio provides that the Repre¬ 
sentatives shall be “apportioned among the several coun¬ 
ties ,yet the majority in the last Legislature, finding 
that by the division of Hamilton county, they could se¬ 
cure an additional Senator and two additional Repre¬ 
sentatives, at once rejected the positive demands of the 
Constitution and reported a bill dividing Hamilton 
county into two Legislative districts. But few at this 
late day, with the light of the discussion which this sub¬ 
ject has brought forth, will pretend that this was done 
from an honest conviction of duty—and fewer still, will 
believe that if nothing could have been gaiiu'd for party 
purposes, that this outrage would have been attempted. 

Previous to the formation of the State Government, 
theTerritory North West of the river Ohio, was governed 
by the Ordinance of Congress, passed July 13, 1787.— 
Under that act of Congress, Ohio, until admitted into the 
Uuioii as a State, was governed. Tiiat law jirovided that 
Representatives should be elected by “countiesor town¬ 
ships.” When the delegates met under the ]WOvisions 
of that Ordinance, to form a State constitution, they 
had the alternatives presented to them of electing their 
Representalives cither by “counties or tovvnship.s.”— 






12i:it they chose the former mode can be seen from the 
plain reaciiiiff of the constitution, which expressly de¬ 
clares that the Representatives shall be “apportioned 
among the several counties.” In the absence of other 
argument, this alone would be sufficient to show the in¬ 
tention of the framers of the constitution. But as if to 
add proof upon proof,—to dispel any lurking doubt, 
the constitution at once settles the question, by the first 
Apportionment, whi h was made by tiie men who 
framed the constitution, and incorporated it within its 
provisions. Section 7, of the schedule declares. 

“Until the firstenumerationsshall be made, as directed in 
the second section of the first article of this constitu¬ 
tion, the county of Hamilton shall be entitled to four 
Senators and eight Representatives; the county of Cler¬ 
mont to one Senator and two Representatives; the 
county of Adams, one Senator and three Representa¬ 
tives; the county of Ross, two Senators and four Rep¬ 
resentatives; the county of Fairfield one Senator and 
two Representatives; the county of Washington, two 
Senators and three Representatives; the county of Bel¬ 
mont, one Senator and two Representatives; the county 
of Jefferson, two Senators and four Representatives, and 
the county of Trumbull one Senator and two Repre¬ 
sentatives.” 

Two years after, the Legislature, composed of many 
of the framers of the constitution, again districted the 
State for Legislative purposes, and every four years 
thereafter the State was districted anew, and in every 
case, the apportionment of Representatives in the lan¬ 
guage ofthe Constitution, was “among the several conn 


county a legislative district—the next year the federal 
leaders, against even the solemn protestations, and ear¬ 
nest remonstrances of the Whig members of the Legis¬ 
lature, repr(;senting the counties interested, detached 
two townships from Athens county, and seven .sections 
from Washington county, and attached them to the coun¬ 
ty of Morgan. The law made no provision for changing 
the legislative districts. At the succeedingeleclion,the 
democratic candidate had a majority in the Morgan dis¬ 
trict, as originally made in the aistricting law ; but by 
changing the limits of the district, so as to correspond 
with the new limits of the county, the Whig can¬ 
didate had the majority. The contest was brought be¬ 
fore the House of Repre.sentatives ; and, as this question 
might settle the political complexion of future legisla¬ 
tures, and give the Whig party the ascendancy, they 
put forth their strong men to meet the emergency. 
Gen. Samson Mason, ol' Clark county, as V dug a sound 
and able constitutional expounder, was deiced at the 
head of the committee on privileges and emotions, that 
an able and convincing report might be made, forever 
settling this important question. We quote from his 
report made in that case, and found in the appendix to 
the House Journal, for the Session of ’45 and ’46. 

“Counties are expressly made elective districts by the 
3d section of the 1st article of the constitution, which 
is in these words: ‘The repre.scntatives shall be chosen 
annually by the citizens of each county respectively, on 
the second Tuesday of October.’ 

“Now, the right of the Legislature to change the 
bounds of counties, so as to increase or dimini.sh tho 


ties” of the State, and never until the last session of the {extent of their territory, is conceded, and yet this pow- 
Ohio Legislature was the doctrine asserted, that coun-jer is precisely co-incident with the power to change the 

For if the several 
districts bv the con- 


ties could be divided for Legislative purpo.ses. If the^ boundaries of election districts, 
doctrine asserted last winter for the fir.st time be true, counties are constituted election 
then were the framers of the Constitution ignorant of stitution, any changes that may bo made in the bouli¬ 
the fact, or else why in their first apportionment, did jdary lines of counties, must necessarily work a corres- 
they allow the people of Hamilton county to electj ponding change in election districts themselves. It 
“/o«r Senators and eiy/it Representatives” in common, in-j would surely be a diflicult task to maintainadistinc- 
stead ofdividingthemamong the townships ofthecounty. tion between a county, composing, as it does, an elec- 
If the doctrine bo true, for forty odd years have the peo-1 tion district by it.self; for the two things are, in con- 
pie of Ohio lived under a Con.stitution, tho meaning of, teinplation, in tho constitution, one, and identical; and 
which neither they, nor those who drafted it knew, un¬ 
til enlightened by the men who composed the majority 
in tl^e last Legislature. 

If the city of Cincinnati had a seperate interest, from 
the remander of the county of Hamilton, so pns.ssing as 
to demand a violation of the Constitution, to 
redre.ss her grievences, why was the city, nay, even the 
township of Cincinnati, divided? The 9th and lOth 
wards of the city, running into its very heart, were cut 
loo.se from tlie other eight wards, and attached to the 
remainder of the county. If the community of interest 


yet it is on a distinction which indicates no difference psr- 
ceptible to tho mind, that the objections taken to the 
votes of Homer, Marion, and the seven sections, is made 
to derive all its support. To snppose that the territory of 
a county may be more or less in extent than the election dis¬ 
trict, is to suppose a constitutional impossibility; for wheren- 
cr there is a county, there is also an election district bearing 
the same name, and having the same extent of territory .— 
What territory, and how much shall constitute a coun¬ 
ty, so that the area be not less than that required by the 
constitution, depends on legislative will, and not on a 
which bound the city and the county together, was lack-{constitutional amendment. But whatever territory 
ing, and their interests were of .so conflicting a character I may be included within the limits established for the 
as to require a divorce at the expense of the Constitution, I county, at any time, that county, so formed, is an elec- 
why notdivide the whole city and notleave a part, where, ! tion district.” 

if the argument of those who attempted to defend this! Additional weight and importance should be attached 
apportionment scheme, be true, there is no reciprocity j to this exposition ofthe constitution by Gen. Mason, 
of interest? The answer to this question, unveils tho j from the fact that it is made under the solemnity of an 
whole plot 

democratic! If suffered to remain with the rest of the 
city, there was a bare chance that the democracy of 
Cincinnati would elect the Senator and the two Rep¬ 
resentatives, awarded to the city* To guard against 
this,—to leave not a “loop” for the democratic party of 
that city to “hang a hope upon”—to place the matter 
beyond all contengency, tho 9th and lOth wards were 
set off with the country townships, and a portion of the 
township of Cincinnati was erected into a Senatorial 
and Repre.sentative district 

Four years ago the districting law made Morgan 


The 9th and the lOth wards, are strongly | oath, and in a judicial capacity, 

Mr. Mason upon that occasion, was supported by the 
arguments of hi.s whig friends, who were also acting 
under the solemnity of their oaths. 

Mr. Phelps, claimed by his party friends to bo an em¬ 
inent lawyer and jurist, representing Geauga county, 
in that Legislature, uses the following strong and em¬ 
phatic language in his speech upon that occasion, as 
written out by himself, and j)ublished in the Ohio State 
Journal of December 30, 1845. Mr. Phelps says: 

“It may be well to inquire what is a county. It is a 
public corporation or body politic, constituting a di.stinct 







organization for courts of justice, for taxation, improve¬ 
ments of roads, and for divers other purposes, in which 
they have a common interest distinct from otlier coun¬ 
ties. Is that all? No, i? is a distinct body corporate for 
the purpose of representation.” 

And again, he says: 

“I maintain that representation is one of the especial 
things for which counties were constituted. It will 
appear, by reference to the constitution, that the framers 
of it contemplated a distinct representation for all the 
counties.” 

Again he says: 

“ The 3d sec., 1st art., provides that representatives 
should be chosen annually by the, citizens of each county. 
The 4th sec., same article, that no person shall be cho¬ 
sen a representative unless he shall have resided one 
year within the county for which he is chosen. These 
all show that distinct representatives were contemplated 
for each county.” 

In the saine speeeh, Mr. Phelps again says: 

“But it is claimed for the counsel for Mr. Betts, that 
the 2d section, article 1, of the constitution, prohibits 
the votes of the two townships from being cast or coun¬ 
ted in Morgan county, because it would be breaking in 
upon the representative districts. Representative dis¬ 
tricts—what are they? We will look in vain for them 
in the constitution. They have no existence there or 
elsewhere, but in the imagination of gentlemen. By 
giving wrong names to things, our reasoning becomes 
false. There are no constitutional representative districts, 
except counties. This section of the constitution pro¬ 
vides, not for laying off the State into representative 
districts, but for a very different thing—to apportion 
the representatives among the several counties.” 

We shall direct the attention of the people of Ohio 
to one other extract from the numerous whig arguments 
made upon that occasion. It is from the speech of Mr. 
Cowen of Belmont county, also reported by himself 
and published in the Ohio State Journal of the the 3d 
January, 184G. During his speech he was interrupted 
by Mr. Reemelin, and the question of Mr. Reemelin, 
and the answer are both written by Mr. Cowen and 
made a part of his argument. 

“Mr. Reemelin inquired if Mr. Cowen meant to bo 
understood that, in apportioning representat ion,the 
Legislature could not divide a county, and assign part of 
a county to one representative district, and part to an¬ 
other? Mr. C. said he did mean to be so understood', the 
representatives must be ‘apportioned among the several 
counties’ as counties —entire and undivided counties. A 
county could not form a part of two representative districts 
for representatives, unless in the case of a new county.” 

The question asked by Mr. Reemelin, it will be 
perceived covers the very ground now in controversy, 
and the answer is explicit, and exactly to the point. “A 
COUNTY COULD NOT FORM A PART OF TWO REPRESENTA¬ 
TIVE DISTRICTS FOR REPRESENTATIVES.” This argu¬ 
ment receives additional weight from the fact, that 
Mr. Cowen’s sound legal and consiitutional views 
induced his jiarty the very next session of the 
Legislature, to make himPresident Judge of his Judicial 
circuit. 

Under these arguments, every whig member of the 
House of Representatives, some of whom were mem¬ 
bers of the last Legislature, under the solemnity of an 
oath, voted to oust the democratic, and give the whig 
member his seat, because “a county could not be divided 
and form a part of two representative districts.” 

The democratic members, then as now, contended 
that a county could not be divided in forming a legisla¬ 
tive district. But they also contended, that a legislative 
district once formed, could not be changed, by a subse¬ 


quent change of county lines, until the next enumera¬ 
tion of white male inhabitants. 

From the foregoing facts and arguments, we leave 
the people of Ohio to judge what honesty of motive 
may be attached to daring infractions of the constitu¬ 
tion, and upon the political rights of the people of 
Ohio? 

The democratic members of the Senate, regarding 
the oath which they had taken to support the constitu¬ 
tion, and to prevent a fraud being perpetrated, which, 
if consummated, would have subverted the political 
rights of the majority of the freemen of Ohio, and have 
forever unalterably fixed the law-making power of the 
State in the hands of an unscrupulous and unprincipled 
minority, withdrew from their seats in order to save the 
constitution, and avert the consequences of revolution, 
which would have forever destroyed that great princi¬ 
ple of Republicanism, the right of the majority to rule. 

The federal leaders being thus foiled in their mad ef¬ 
forts to violate the constitution, and to subvert the fun¬ 
damental principles of republican government, at 
once threw off the mask of honesty, and entered into 
a. conspiracy to smuggle into law an unconstitutional ap¬ 
portionment scheme, so gross and fraudulent, that they 
dared not resort to constitutional means to effect its pas¬ 
sage, but resorted to trick and ^‘cunning,” that thereby 
they might maintain their ill-gotten power, and thus 
trample down the inherent rights of the people. 

This brings us to a consideration of the unconstitu- j 
tionaland fraudulent means by which the federal lead- ' 
ers attempted to palm their iniquitous districting scheme 
upon the people of Ohio. 

The bill first passed the Senate, and in the House re¬ 
ceived sundry amendments, restoring to it the features it ; 
had when originally reported. The vote on the pas¬ 
sage of the bill in the House was taken on the lOth of 
February, as shown by the House Journal—page 568. 

It was returned to the Senate with the House amend¬ 
ments, on Friday, February 11, (see Senate Journal 
page 521.) The Senate agreed to such amendments as 
related to new counties, and disagreed to the others, and 
returned the bill on the same day to the House, and ^ 
there it was laid upon the table; (see House Journal page j 
576.) i 

Under date of Saturday, Feb. 12, the following pro- j 
ceedings are recorded (see House Journal, page 580:) | 

“On motion of Mr. Anthony, |j 

“The House took up the bill (S. No. 70) to fix and li 
apportion the representation of the General Assem- ^ 
bly of the State of Ohio. . 

“The same gentlemen moved that the House recon- j 
sider the vote by which it pa.ssed said bill. | 

“On motion of the same gentleman, ] 

“Said motion was laid upon the table. | 

“On motion of the same gentleman, | 

“Said bill was recommitted to a select committee of | 
three—Messrs. Anthony, Warren and Breck.” ^ 

At this point it becomes vastly important to examine 
the Journal, and contrast it with the facts as elicited by ; 
other evidence. 

In the proceedings of that day, as reported in the , 
Ohio State Journal, we find the following: 

“On motion of Mr. Anthony, the vote on the pas¬ 
sage of the Apportionment Bill was reconsidered and the 
bill was recommitted to Messrs. Anthony, Warren and 
Breck.” 

In the reported proceedings of the Ohio Statesman, of 
the same day, we find the reports of the State Journal, 
confirmed, as true, by the following: j 

“Mr. Anthony moved that the House reconsider ih 
vote upon the passage of Senate bill No. 70, to ap- ! 









11 


portion the representation in the General Assembly, 
See., which was agreed to; and 

“The bill was then recommitted to a select committee 
of three—Messrs. Anthony, Breck and Warren. 

In a legislative notice of the proceedings of the pre¬ 
vious week, published on Monday, Feb. 14th, we find 
the following in the “Statesman:” 

“The apportionment bill is now in the Senate. That 
body, some days since, disagreed to the amendments 
made to the bill in the House, and it was sent back.— 
The House reconsidered its vote on the amendments, 
and then reconsidered its vote on the passage of the bill, 
and referred it to a select committee, notifying the Sen¬ 
ate, by a message, of the fact of the reconsideration 
being had.” 

Thus have we the concurrent evidence of twopolitical 
papers in Columbus, to show that the Journals of the 
House have been falsified, for the piirpose of shielding 
the majority from the censure of attempting to palm off 
as a law a bill, the vote on the passage of which had been 
reconsidered by the House. 

Is other evidence wanted to sustain this high charge. 
If so, it can be found in the fact, that the Clerk of the 
House of Rej)resentatives, notified the Seante that such 
reconsideration had been had. Although this message, 
by a strange oversight, or by a base design to assist in 
the mutilation, does not appear in the Senate Journals, 
yet unfortunately, these journals contain recorded evi¬ 
dence, that such a message had been sent from the 
' House, and that it was received by the Senate. 

By reference to the Senate journal, of Saturday, Feb. 
12, the following proceedings, (see page 546,) will be 
found. 

“Mr. Bennett moved that the Senate reconsider its 
vote on House amendments to S. No. 70, to fix and ap¬ 
portion the representation of the General Assembly of 
the State of Ohio. 

“Mr. Reemelin rose to a question of order, which he 
reduced to writing, as follows: 

“That a motion to reconsider a vote on an amend¬ 
ment is not in order, while the fact is announced to the 
Senate that the House had reconsidered its vote upon the 
PASSAGE OF THE BILL, and has therefore withdrawn the 
very amendments upon which it is purposed to get the 
Senate to reconsider, and while the bill itself is not in 
possession of the Senate.” 

Here the fact is placed upon the record, by a ques¬ 
tion of order, that the House had officially announced 
its reconsideration of the vote by which the appor¬ 
tionment bill passed that body; yet the Senate journal 
contains no record of the message that announces the 
fact, and the House Journal gives no record of such 
a reconsideration being had. 

On the one side we have the evidence of the Report¬ 
ers of both political parties, who, in their daily reports, 
give the same fact, and to support it, we have the evi¬ 
dence of Mr. Reemelin’s question of order, which cor¬ 
roborates the same fact. On the other hand, we 
have the negative evidence of the journal, as made up 
by the Clerk of the House. Between this positive and 
this negative evidence, the people must judge whether 
a charge of a falsification of the Legislative journals 
be well sustained or not. 

In making up their minds upon this subject, it should 
be borne in mind that when a motion to reconsider a 
vote is made, and that motion is laid on the table, under 
the rules of Parliamentary law, it carries the bill with 
it! The House journal says, that when “Mr. Anthony 
moved that the Plouse reconsider the vote by which it 
passed said hill, on motion of the same gentleman, said 
motion was laid on the table.” That motion carried 
the bill with it—from the bill that motion could not, 


under the rules of Parliamentary law, be separated, and 
with a full knowledge of the law on that subject, we 
challenge contradiction from any source or any quarter. 
With this fact in view, we declare, without hesitancy, 
that the reported proceedings in the “Ohio State Jour¬ 
nal” and the “Ohio Statesman” are correct, and that to 
conceal the fact that a reconsideration of the vote on 
the final passage of the bill was had, the journals of 
the House have been falsified. Instead of the words, 
“said motion was laid on the table,” it should, and we 
doubt not in the original, it did read, “said motion 
was'agreed to.'’* This fact established, shows that the 
vote on the passage of the apportionment scheme was 
reconsidered, and that, on the day of the adjournment 
of the Legislature, had the correct question been taken, 
the vote would have been, “shall the bill pass?” In 
Parliamentary law, it never passed, for a reconsideration 
of the vote on its passage, placed the bill precisely in 
(he condition it was when read the third time. 

These facts are sufficient to demonstrate that the 
journals of both Houses have been changed and no 
longer represent the true action of the Legislature.— 
But we have in our possession the fact, that 
a prominent whig member of the House admits 
I (hat the vote for a reconsideration was carried, “but,” 
Ihe says, “as a question of order was raised; and on that 
question it was decided that the House could not recon¬ 
sider its vote upon the passage of the bill, after the 
Senate had taken action upon the House amendments, 
this vote was left out of the Journal as being out of or¬ 
der.” Here then is the admission that the Journals are 
false; and we say doubly false, inasmuch as this ques¬ 
tion of order, and the decision upon it, which, on ac¬ 
count of the subsequent action of the House, became 
vastly important, is also omitted from the Journal. 

We would gladly put the most charitable construc¬ 
tion upon this falsification of the journal, and there¬ 
fore infer that the journal was changed because the ac¬ 
tion of the House upon the bill was out of order, inas¬ 
much as the Senate had taken subsequent action upon 
f.he bill, which must also be reconsidered, in order to 
give the House the right to reconsider its vote upon its 
final passage. But let us apply the same rule to the sub¬ 
sequent action of the House, and then see how the case 
will stand. Without any subsequent vote of the House 
on the passage of the bill, it was again returned to the 
Senate with the House amendments; and the Senate had 
again taken action upon the bill, as will be seen by the 
following quotation from the Senate journal: (See page 
560.) 

“Message from the House of Representatives: 

“Mr. Speaker :—The House recedes from its first and 
second, and insists upon its remaining amendments to 
the bill (S. No. 70) to fix and apportion the representa¬ 
tion of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio. 

“Attest: 'H. A. SWIFT, Clerk 

“Mr. Ewing moved to lay said Senate bill No. 70 
upon the table, and demanded the yeas and nays there¬ 
on, which were ordered, and resulted as follows,” &c. 

“So the motion was lost. 

“Mr. Ijewis moved that the Senate recede from its 
disagreementto the third House amendment to said bill.” 

“ Mr. Backus demanded a call of the Senate, which 
was had. 

“Messrs. Ankeny, Blocksom, Byers, Burns, Cronise, 
Fmerie, Evans, Ewing, Graham, King, Olds, Reeme¬ 
lin, Scott, Wheeler and Winegarner were absent;” and 
that after sending for the absentees, 

“ On motion of Mr. Corwin, the Senate adjourned.” 

By this adjournment, the bill was laid upon the table. 
There was also at that time, as shown by the above ex¬ 
tract from the journal, an undecided question pending 










upon the. motion of Mr. Lewis: that motion was never 
withdrawn, and still remains upon the journal undeci¬ 
ded. 

These extracts from the journal show that the Sen¬ 
ate had taken action upon tlie bill, and that under this 
question of order decided in the House, and considered 
so important as to require a falsification of the journal; 
the House could not again act upon the bill until all 
this action of the Senate had been reconsidered, and the 
bill again returned to the House. Yet four days after¬ 
wards, and while the bill was still lying upon the table 
in the Senate, and that body without a quorum for the 
transaction of business, the House undertook to recede 
from its amendments. 

If this action of the House wasin order, and could for 
a moment be entertained, tlie prior action of the House 
by which it reconsidered its vote upon the passage of the 
bill, was also in order; and then, notwithstanding the 
falsification of the journal, every honest man would be 
compelled to acknowledge, that this bill had never 
passed the House; and if the prior action of the House 
was so much out of order as to require a falsification of 
the journal, and a violation of the constitution, which 
required them to keep a journal of their proceedings, 
then this subsequent action of the House was equally 
out of order; and thus to this day the House has not re¬ 
ceded from its amendments. We care not which horn 
of the dilemma the federal leaders may choose to take, 
either is fatal to the bill. But the subsequent action of 
both the House and the Senate, is equally fatal to its 
validity and altogether unconstitutional. 

Let it be remembered, that from Monday until Fri¬ 
day, the bill had been slumbering upon the table in the 
Senate. That body during all that time was without a 
quorum for the transaction of business; yet on Friday, 
the House undertook to recede from its amendments, 
by the passage of the following resolution, viz: 

^‘Resolved, That as touching the amendments of the 
House of Representatives to Senate bill No. 70, to fix 
and apportion the representation of the next General 
Assembly of the State of Ohio, the House recedes from 
all its amendments to which the Senate has not agreed, 
and that the Senate be informed thereof forthwith.” 

In addition to the question of order already decided, 
to be so binding as to require a falsification of the jour¬ 
nal; in this case, added to all the circumstances 
attending the former, we have a still more fatal objec¬ 
tion in the fact, that the bill was out of the possession 
of the House. We quote from the law on that subject as 
laid down in Jefferson’s Manual. “When a question has 
been once made and carried, either in the affirmative 
or negative, no motion for reconsideration of any vote 
shall be in order, after a bill, resolution, message, re¬ 
port, AMRXDMENT or motioii, upoii which the vote was 
taken, shall have gone out of the possession of the 
House.” These amendment -, as well as the bill itself, 
liad been four days in tlio Senate, and had received the 
action-of that body. In the one case, the objections 
were so fatal, as to require a falsification of the journal, 
and yet, in the later case with all the former objections, 
and the still more positive prohibition of the “amend¬ 
ments having gone out of the possession of the House,” 
these law abiding whig leaders would make the people 
believe, that all was parliamentary and fair. 

But when in addition to all this, the people of Ohio 
shall have learned the boasted trickenj by which this 
fraud is pretended to have been palmed upon them, they 
will be better enabled to judge of the honesty of the 
past winter’s legislation. 

Knowing that this fraud could only be consummated 
by a violation of the constitution and of parliamentary 
law, the majority entered into a conspiracv to deceive 


and trick the democratic members of the House, that 
they might grasp and retain power, and thus subvert the 
right of the majority to rule, and place the law making 
power of the State into the hands of an unprincipled 
minority. 

This conspiracy is fully developed by their own ad¬ 
missions, and disgraceful boastings. One of the par- 
ticapators, or at least one in the secret of the conspira- i 
cy, was the letter writer of the Summit county Beacon, 
a leading whig paper of Northern Ohio. He details, 
with all the minuteness of one advised in advance, the 
scene in the House of Representatives, on Friday, Feb¬ 
ruary l8th, during the passage of the resolution offered 
by Mr. Park, by which it is claimed that tlie apportion¬ 
ment bill, then upon the table of the Senate, wiiere it i 
was placed by the adjournment of the previous Mon- 1 
day, was passed into a law. He writes under date of I 
Saturday, Feb. 19. In speaking of the apportionment 
bill, the writer says: 

“Every ordinary method was tried to bring these men j 

to a discharge of the duty, they were under oath to per- - 

form, and it failed. It became necessary to use force, or : 

cunning. The latter was chosen, and yesterday ‘Father I 

Park,’ of Lorain, the staid and excellent Chairman of j 

the Committee on benevolent institutions, arose in his ; 

place to offer a resolution. The Speaker (by a precon- | 

certed arrangement,) had resigned the Chair to Dr. 
Truesdale of Trumbull, a man made on purpose to do \ 
up the thing right. No body supposed that Mr. Park’s 
resolution related to anything more dangerous than the 
reception of a pupil into one of tha Asylums, or some- ' 

thing of that sort, and all, from confidence in the man, ' 

were prepared to cry ‘aye.’ The resolution was read 
distinctly, but perhaps rather fluently by the Speaker 
pro tern, and proved to be one declaring that the House 
recede from its amendments to Senate bill No. 70, and 
that a message to that effect be sent to the Senate. I'he 
question upon the adoption of the resolution was put 
plainly and promptly as was proper, and carried almost 
unanimously, some of the Locofocos even voting for it. 

It was immediately declared passed, and the Clerk, (be¬ 
ing in the secret,) sent the Sergeant-at-arms with the 
message to the Senate before the echo of the loud ‘aye’ 
had hardly returned from the gallery. The bill was then 
passed, and only needed to be enrolled and signed to be¬ 
come a law. It was by some magic, or rather by the 
chirographic powers of our mutual friend ‘Jimmy 
Noble,’enrolled in about five minutes, reported back 
from the enrolling committee, signed by the Speaker of 
the House and sent to the Senate for the signature of 
its Speaker—all before the locofocos had comprehend¬ 
ed the meaning of Mr. Park’s resolution. At this time 
a more amusing scene was never witnessed than that 
))resented by the countenances of the members of the 
House; those of the whigs showing an expression of tri¬ 
umph struggling from concealment, and those of the lo¬ 
cofocos saying to one another like Brown to his convic¬ 
ted brother in the farce ^Sniilh we've been JooledV An 
attempt was made to reconsider the vote on the adop¬ 
tion of the resolution on the ground that they were not 
aware of its effect when the question was first taken but 
failed.” 

This letter writer, unconscious of the effict of the 
secrets he was divulging, unveils the whole plot, and 
although he attempts to smooth over a portion of it, hi.s 
letter shows that the whole scheme was concocted out of 
the House, and that eachactorin the play had hisj)artas- 
signed, and was perfect in it. The bill, the writer says, 
was “enrolled inaboutfive minutes.” Itmusttruly have 
taken a magic power to have performed the task of wri¬ 
ting out a bill, covering nearly seven pages of the vol¬ 
ume of general laws, in five minutes. The bill had 







r 


13 


been left by the adjournment of Monday on the table of 
the Senate, and in possession of the Clerk. From that 
table, and from the possession of the Senate Clerk it 
could not legally pass. It was fraudulently taken 
therefrom to the House and was enrolled in advance, and 
hence, in the words of the letter writer, “theC/erA: being 
in the secret,'^' he was enabled to send the “Sergeant-at- 
arrns with the message to the Senate, before the echo of 
Uie loud ‘aye’ had hardly returned from the gallery.” 
Does not these things prove the conspiracy? Upon ev¬ 
idence less strong and less positive, men have been in¬ 
dicted, convicted and sentenced by courts of justice, 
and have paid the penalty of their crimes by imprison¬ 
ment. 

But we have other evidence. After the return of 
Mr. Speaker Hawkins to his home in Eaton, he is re¬ 
ported, in speaking of the passage of Mr. Park’s reso¬ 
lution, as saying, 

“When it was determined by the whigs that the reso¬ 
lution should be passed by the House, he (Speaker Haw¬ 
kins,) informed them that if ho was in the Chair he 
would read the resolution as he read all others, so that it 
might be distinctly heard by all the members, and that 
if any democrat caught his eye and wished to speak 
against the passage of the resolution, he should be heard. 
It was then determined by the whigs that he should leave 
the Chair because they did not wish him to comprom¬ 
ise his official station—in which opinion he fully con¬ 
curred, and left the Chair. And thereupon the res¬ 
olution was passed in a little less time than lightning 
would run down a greased pole.” 

This report is corroborated by the declarations of Mr 
Hawkins in his Dayton speech, as given in the “Em¬ 
pire” of that city, the correctness of which can be 
proven by testimony of men whose veracity will not 
be impeached. In that speech the Empire says: 

“Mr Speaker'Havvkins openly boasted of the manner 
in which the “tin-pan” had ^Hricked,” (that was the 
idea,) the democratic minority of the House in the pas¬ 
sage of the resolution by that body pretending to re¬ 
cede from its amendments to the bill. He avowed that 
the resolution had been prepared, and the wholejjscherne 
concocted before hand, that in order to secure its adop¬ 
tion without knowledge or suspicion of the democrats, the 
resolution was handed to Elah Park (a plain, sleepy, 
unpretending kind of an oX&dolt,) whom nobody would 
suspect of offering such a resolution. He described, 
laughingly and exultingly, the way in which the‘trick’ 
was carried out—how the old man addressed the Speak¬ 
er, Mr. Truesdale, then temporarily put in the chair, 
as part of the scheme;) how he fumbled in his pocket 
for his resolution, as if he could scarcely find it; how 
he got it out and put on his ‘specks;’ how the demo¬ 
crats looked up for a moment, and how, seeing that it 
was daddy Park, they looked down again, and went 
some to writing letters, some to reading newspapers, 
some to one thing and some to another, how some of 
them supposed that the old man was about to present a 
bill to incorporate a church, or a lyceum, or debating 
society; or offer a resolution to provide some unfor¬ 
tunate lunatic with a place in the Asylum, or for the re¬ 
lief of some one of his constituents who had had his 
barn burnt; how the resolution was mumbled over by 
Truesdale, and the vote put at once; how the whigs all 
ready responded aye, and how the democrats, not know¬ 
ing the ‘trick' responded not at all, but wrote, or talked, 
or read on; and how they were in this manner‘caught 
napping.’ ” 

The parliamentary law, and the rules laid down for 
the government of deliberative assemblies, regard the 
purloining of a paper, and more particularly a bill, upon 
which action is to be had, as an outrage of no common 


order. Mr. Jefferson informs us in his Manual, that in 
Parliament “a bill being missing, the House resolved 
that a protestation should be madeand subscribed by the 
members “before almighty god and the honorable 

HOUSE, THAT NEITHER MYSELF NOR ANY OTHER TO MY 
KNOWLEDGE HAVE TAKEN AWAY, OR DO AT THIS PRESENT 
CONCEAL A BILL ENTITLED, «fec.” 

The taking of the apportionment bill from the table 
of the Senate, where it was laid by the adjournment of 
Monday, added larceny to the conspiracy against the 
rights of the people of the State. In the common walks 
of life, crimes such as these would not go unpunished—- 
and yet, because they were committed in a Legislative 
capacity, the perpetrators find aiders and comforters 
among partisans of the same political school. 

The passage of the resolution in the House, although 
done by “fraud and conspiracy,” and in vioiution of 
the same rule of order, which caused the falsification of 
the journals and the purloining the bill from the Sen¬ 
ate Chamber, and enrolling it even before its pretended 
passage, are only a part of the scheme by which the 
fraud was perpetrated, as will appear from the Senate 
journals. 

The Constitution requires two-thirds of the members 
to form a quorum for the transaction of business. 
The Senate journals show that during the entire day 
on Friday, not more than one half of the members were 
in the Senate Chamber ; yet a message was received 
announcing the passage of the House resolutions ; and 
the journal of the Senate, as well as the date of the 
bill, show that the speaker of the Senate signed the bill 
on Fridaywithout a quorum, and before the Senate was 
notified that the Speaker of the House had signed it ; 
and one day before it was reported back from the hands 
of the enrolling committee. To substantiate these char¬ 
ges, we quote from the journal, (page 565.) “ The 
Speaker directed a call of the Senate,” &,c. Seventeen 
Senators were found absent, two of whom were 
sick and fifteen refused to attend, as shown by the jour¬ 
nal ; and every recorded vote upon all questions during 
the entire day, shows only from seven to seventeen 
Senators present. No business then under the Consti¬ 
tution could be transacted ; and all that was done ex¬ 
cept sending for the absentees and adjourning, was con¬ 
stitutionally void. Again, the journal of Saturday, has 
the following entries—see pages 574-’5. 

“Message from the House of Representatives. 

“Mr. Speaker, The Speaker of the House has signed 
the following enrolled bills, and joint resolutions.” 

The last of which is 

“S. No. 70, to fix and apportion the representation 
of the General Assembly of the State of Ohio.” Then 
comes the following entry: 

“Said enrolled bills were severally signed by the 
Speaker of the Senate on yesterday.” 

Also on page 581-2, same day, 

“Mr. Hastings from the committee on enrollment, 
made the following report: 

“The standing committee on enrollment have com¬ 
pared the following enrolled bills and resolutions, and 
find the same truly enrolled,” among which we find 
“S. No. 70 to fix and apportion the representation of 
the General Assembly of the State of Ohio.” 

The Speaker then, had not only signed the bill with¬ 
out a quorum to constitute a Senate for the transac¬ 
tion of business; but in his hot haste to consummate 
the ‘trick' he even signed the bill one day in advance, 
and before reported and enrolled by the enrolling com- 
miRee. 

The parliamentary law on this subject may be found 
in the following joint standing rules of the last Legisla¬ 
ture. 






14 


“13. When bills or joint resolutions are enrolled, 
they shall be examined by a joint committee of two 
members from each House, to be appointed a standing 
committee for that purpose, whose duty it shall be to 
compare the enrolled with the engrossed bills and reso¬ 
lutions passed by the two Houses, correct any clerical 
errors which may be discovered, and report i^orthwith 
to their respective Houses. 

“14. After examination and report, each bill and 
joint resolution shall be signed in their respective Hou¬ 
ses; first, by the Speaker of the House of Represen¬ 
tatives, and then by the Speaker of the Senate, who 
shall fix the date thereto.” 

In the administration of justice in our courts, the 
rules of the court, and usages of law, as to pleadings 
&c. are strictly enforced. Of how much more bind¬ 
ing validity then should parliamentary usages and law 
be observed in the passage of enactments, affecting not 
only the rights of citizens, but the very liberties of the 
people? 

Such, citizens of Ohio, is a faithful delineation of a 
portion only of the appliances and means used by the 
majority in the last Legislature to pass an apportionment 
bill, violating the Constitution, and forever perpetua¬ 
ting power in their own hands in opposition to the 
voice of the majority of the people of the State. Such, 
also, are some of the facts which induced the democratic 
convention to declare, 

“That there is now in existence In Ohio, no law, by 
means of which the State Legislature can be formed 
and organized after the second Tuesday in October 
next.” 

In this declaration, the Convention expects to be 
sustained by every friend of constitutional liberty 

There is not a government, even in monarchical Eu¬ 
rope, that would have dared so grossly and fraudulently 
to have trampled upon the constitutional rights of the 
people; and when we add to this the fraudulent and 
tricky means by which this usurpation of power has been 
attempted, let no man—no matter to what party he may 
belong—who wishes to live a freeman, tamely submit, 
while he has in his power the peaceable, yet effectual 
means of resisting this overthrow of constitutional lib¬ 
erty, and usurpation of the law making power of the 
State. 

You may be, nay, you are already told, that a revolu¬ 
tion is about to be precipitated upon you. We answer, 
that a revolution has already been forced upon you; 
the constitution has been violated, and if submitted to, 
the law making power of the state, is, by fraud and trick¬ 
ery, taken from the majority, and forever and irrevoca¬ 
bly fixed in the hands of an unscrupulous minority, as 
has been the case in other States of this Union. 

There is yet one method by which these wrongs can 
be righted, and an apportionment bill constitutionally 
passed. That method is pointed out in the second res¬ 
olution adopted by the Convention. It is for the Gov¬ 
ernor to exercise the power placed in his hands, by the 
Constitution, and to call the Legislature together in ex¬ 
traordinary session. This will save the law-making 
power of the State from annihilation, for it seems to be 
a conceded fact, that to preserve that power, under the 
constitution a quadrennial apportionment is necessary. 
The old law expires by its own limitation before the time 
for the meeting of the next Legislature, and no law has 
been passed to supply its place. Upon the Governor then, 
under the Constitution, devolves the responsibility. His 
party friends brought on the crisis by their mad acts, and 
with the simple request made by the delegates to the 
State Convention, in their character of peace loving 


citizens, Gov. Bebb, counselling with his party friends, 
will be left to make his own election. 

We have no hopes that he will accede to that request. 
Even if willing so to do, his better judgment would be 
overruled by others—by the men he Would take to his 
counsel and his confidence. Men so far wanting in princi¬ 
ple as to attempt to palm offasa law, an unconstitutional 
apportionment scheme, which never finally passed either 
branch of the Legislature, for the purpose of grasping 
and retaining the law making power for sinister purpo¬ 
ses, will lack the moral courage to retrace their steps, 
and thus right the wrongs inflicted upon the country. 

Thus believing, we are forced to treat the subject as 
if no power existed to remedy the evil, save that which 
exists in the inherent righis of the people. The reme¬ 
dy is in their hands—it is a peaceable one, and will be 
found equal to the crisis. 

Left then, as the State soon will be, by the mad and 
patricidal acts of the federal leaders, without a Consti¬ 
tution, you have it in your power to remedy the evil, to 
stay the revolution which these men commenced.— 
You have in your hands the means of restoring a 
constitutional government, and placing your liberties 
and unalienable rights upon a sure and permanent foun¬ 
dation. The remedy is found in the third resolution of 
the Convention, and it is both peaceable and certain.— 
You will thus prevent the exercise of power upon 
the part of the conspirators,’’^ which thev have sought 
to obtain by fraud and trick, and by an overthrow of 
the Constitution: and you wull also exercise the un¬ 
alienable right guaranteed to you in the Constitution, of 
reconstructing your government upon a more sure 
foundation, and “in consonance with the spirit and im¬ 
provements of the age.” The Constitution itself pro¬ 
vides fully for the emergency. In the formation of 
that instrument, its framers placed this among your 
reserved rights. It may be found in the Bill of Rights, 
in the first section of the eighth article, and is in these 
words : 

“That the general, great, and essential principles of 
liberty and free government may be recognized, and 
forever unalterably established, wo declare— 

“Sec. 1. That all men are born equally free and in¬ 
dependent, and have certain natural, inherent, and 
UNALIENABLE RIGHTS; amongst which are the 
enjoying and defending life and liberty, acquiring, pos¬ 
sessing, and protecting property, and pursuing and 
obtaining happiness and safety; and every free 
republican government, being founded on their sole 
authority, and organized for the great purpose of pro¬ 
tecting their rights and liberties, and securing their inde¬ 
pendence: to effect these ends, they (the people) have 
AT ALL TIMES, u Complete power to alter, reform or abol¬ 
ish their government, whenever they may deem it 
necessary.” 

Let us not be told that the power to reform the gov¬ 
ernment (the constitution) has been delegated to the 
Legislature, therefore, you cannot again use that power 
until the Legislate throws it back upon you. The con¬ 
stitution declares this right unalienable; yet you will be 
told that you have alienated an unalienable right. This 
we hold ,to be impossible. Again: You will be told 
that you can only use the power to reform the consti¬ 
tution at such times as the Legislature may say. The 
language of the constitution is, “AT ALL TIMES A 
COMPLETE POWER to alter, reform,'” or even to 
‘abolish,’ whenever they (the people, not the Legisla¬ 
ture,) “may deem it necessary.” In order to be fully 
understood, they have coupled this right to reform the 
government with the natural right to defend your life 
when attacked: The power, then, to reform your 







15 



constitution whenever you may deem it necessary, is 
declared to be just as natural, inherent, and UNA- 
LIENBLE as your right to defend your life. 

The path of duty, then, is plain, and the remedy for 
the evils cast upon you by the federal leaders, is both 
peaceable and practicable. 

Before the time fixed for the annual meeting of the 
Legislature, the law making power in Ohio will have 
expired for want of an apportionment, under which 
Senators and Representatives can be elected. No in¬ 
convenience will be experienced by the people. The 
loss of a winter’s legislation cannot be seriously missed; 
the people will then peaceably and certainly reform the 
government; a new constitution will be adopted, em¬ 
bracing a reorganization of the Judiciary, making all offi¬ 
ces elective by the people, prohibiting any increase of the 
State debt without a direct vote of the people, providing 
a system of taxation that will operate equally upon 
all classes, in short: in the language of the third resolu¬ 
tion of the Convention, a constitution “in consonance 
with the spirit and improvement of the age.” 

The democratic party believing that a large majority 
of the freemen of Ohio, were desirous of reforming 
the constitution, have attempted that reformation 
in one of the modes pointed out by that instrument.— 
Bnt the federal party have refused the people of 
Ohio even the poor privilege to vote for or against 
a convention to reform it. In nothing more than 
this, perhaps, have they manifested their fear of the 
people. If they are willing to acknowledge the demo¬ 
cratic doctrine, “that the majority should govern,” 
w^hy are they unwilling to let the voice of the people bo 
heard upon this all important question? If the major¬ 
ity of the freemen of Ohio wish a new constitution, 
should they not have it? And if the federal leaders will 
not permit the people to enjoy this right in this method; 
and when they behold the old constitution torn and 
bleeding beneath the feet of these men, and when through 
this violation of the constitution, they have seized upon 


the law making power, and are thereby endeavoring 
to subvert the liberties of the people, is it not time for 
freemen to act? Is it not time to use the other con¬ 
stitutional method pointed out in the instrument, 
and inscribed upon your “Bill of Rights?” Is it 
not time to revert to your ‘‘natural, inherent, and UNA¬ 
LIENABLE RIGHTS,” and reform your constitu¬ 
tion? 

Let not the usurpers—*the men who have refused 
you permission to reform your constitution—who 
are refusing to let you elect your own officers, 
think that they can longer stand between you, and your 
natural, inherent and inalienable rights. The way is 
open before you, it is in your power to redress your 
wrongs, reform your government, secure your liberty; 
and establish upon a sure foundation, your natural, in¬ 
herent and unalienable rights. The remedy is peace¬ 
able, natural and constitutional. Wo be to him, who 
shall dare place himself between an insulted people, and 
the exercise of their constitutional rights. 

Fellow citizens, the crisis has come. It has been forced 
upon you by the fraud, the conspiracy, and the overthrow 
of the constitution by the leaders of the federal party.— 
If you are prepared to become “hewers of wood, and 
drawers of water,” you have but to hold out yourhands 
to the usurpers, and the manacles will soon be riveted 
upon them. But if you will let decision, firmness, en¬ 
ergy and a determination to die as freemen, rather than 
live as slaves, govern your actions; the liberty purchased 
by your fathers upon the battle-fields of the Revolution, 
will still be unto your children as a perpetual heritage. 
Respectfully, 

DAVID T. DISNEY, 
HENRY C. WHITMAN, 
EDSON B. OLDS, 

CHAS. B. FLOOD, 
SAMUEL MEDARY. 
Columbus, May, 1848. 







